Flow Athletic’s hybrid class pushes our fitness limits

In downward dog, I’m sweating a whole lot more than usual. It’s not because the room is heated (it’s not actually, it’s quite pleasant) and it’s not because I’m trying to impress Yogi master, Kate Kendall either (although I am trying to). I’m dripping from my forehead, upper lip and many other areas I won’t mention because just a few minutes earlier I was slogging it out on an indoor bike to T.Swizzle tunes.

Flow Athletic’s signature class, Bikeasana, is a mixture of indoor spin class and flow yoga, taking the fitness hybrid concept to a whole new level. I arrived at the class on a Sunday morning not really sure what to expect, so naturally, I dove in head on (and potentially went too hard too early).

For those of you picturing frantic spin bike sprinting with intermittent cobras and child’s poses, that’s not the way it’s done. The class begins with thirty minutes of spin, with six tracks feat. Kings of Leon and little bit of Tina Turner (my personal fave). Ben Lucas leads the spinning and while he’s generally an extremely likable guy I’ll admit I kind of hated him for a second when he sprung a three-minute sprint on us at the very end. Once you’ve completed the cycle leg, you’ve got five minutes to get into the yoga studio where Kate Kendall takes you through thirty minutes of “delicious” yoga. The combination is unexpected but surprisingly harmonious.

The class is the perfect pick for the time-poor fit chick and equally, it’s a great way to get your cardio fix while lengthening and unwinding with the flow sequence that follows. The balance of the the two opposite practices is actually what the class is all about. At Flow Athletic the philosophy is that for every strength session we do, we should do one cardio and one yoga class to achieve the ultimate fitness balance. Another serious benefit of the class is the fact that you’re already warm when you hit the mat, meaning that your head to knees and pigeon poses can be pushed just a little bit deeper. It made me feel like I was a lot better at yoga than I actually am in real life.

The verdict? I walked out feeling on top of the world on a Sunday morning, a little more centred and pleased with the fact that I’d earned myself a skinny cappuccino and a generous serving of eggs. Best of all, the class taught me a little something too: Life’s better with a bit of balance.